The Ohio House recently approved its version of the two-year state budget (H.B. 49), taking aim at key provisions in the budget introduced by Governor Kasich. This newest version of the spending bill includes significant alterations in proposed funding for the Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities (DODD), and axed many, though not all, of the...
Author: Rose Frech (Rose Frech)
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Governor’s DODD Budget Includes Investments in Waiver Spending and Rate Increases
Governor Kasich’s recently released executive budget includes several noteworthy adjustments to funding within the state’s developmental disabilities system. Touted as an extension of the state’s “historic” investments of the previous budget cycle, the proposal includes increased funding on several important initiatives.[i] However, the budget includes some notable cuts as well. Overall, the budget proposes a...
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What Happened to General Assistance in Ohio?
This year, we will reflect on a major milestone in social welfare history known as welfare reform. Enacted in 1996, TANF, or Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, provides minimal cash assistance for very poor families with children, and funds other programs and services that aim to promote self-sufficiency. TANF replaced Aid to Families with Dependent...
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Ohio Announces Initial Approval of HCBS Transition Plan
On Monday, June 6th, the Ohio Office of Health Transformation released a statement announcing the recent initial approval of the state’s Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Transition Plan, by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The plan, submitted originally in March, 2015, was developed in response to new CMS rules for states operating 1915(c)...
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DODD Scorecard Suggests Progress on Budget Initiatives has been Slow
The Ohio Department of Development Disabilities (DODD) recently released updated data highlighting progress on several key initiatives, including expanding home-and-community based service (HCBS) waiver enrollment and increasing access to community employment. These initiatives were developed as a result of the last biennial budget, which included a $300 million investment in DODD services, mostly aimed at...
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Will my insurance cover my IUD?
It has been well-established that long-acting and reversible methods of contraception like IUDs and the implant are a good option for many women. They provide the most effective coverage of all available contraceptive methods available, with failure rates of less than one percent; they can last up to a decade; and they can be easily...
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The Social Services Block Grant is under attack. What does this mean for Ohio?
The House Ways and Means Committee announced last week that Chairman Kevin Brady (R-Texas) is sponsoring legislation that would end the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG), a $1.7 billion dollar grant allocated to states to fund numerous critical social service programs. And on Wednesday, this bill was one of several that passed through the Committee,...
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MBR Bill Proposes More Change for System
Services for individuals with developmental disabilities in Ohio may see more changes through the recent proposals outlined in House Bill 483, introduced last week. Sponsored by Representative Amstutz, the House Bill is a part of the mid-biennium review (MBR), a Kasich construct, which allows the administration to advance policy initiatives in off-budget years through working...
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Poverty is everywhere…even in Geauga County
According to the most recent data made available by the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS), Cuyahoga County is home to the greatest number of low-income residents in the state. About 18 percent of the population lives at or below the poverty threshold, about $19,000 for a family of three. In the city of...
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CMS “unlikely” to Grant Ohio 10 Years to Integrate Waiver Services
According to a recent update released by the Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities (DODD), the Department now finds it “unlikely” that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will grant Ohio ten years to transition to delivering all of their home-and-community-based waiver services (HCBS) in integrated settings. Read the full statement here. This announcement...